May 2018

Mission NOT Impossible

The Merck Manuals mission:

We believe that health information is a universal right and that every person is entitled to accurate, accessible and usable medical information. And we believe that we have a responsibility to protect, preserve and share the best current medical information to enable more informed decisions, enhance relationships between patients and professionals, and improve health care outcomes around the world.

The mission of the Merck Manuals is lofty, but it is one we work every day to achieve. And we believe that, with your help and the help of our other contributors, we are achieving it. As you know, the Manuals are available in both print and digital format. The digital versions are available as websites and also as apps that users can download to their mobile devices. The professional version is available in 9 languages, the consumer version is available in 10, and we expect to add 2 additional languages before the end of this year.

As you know, the website and apps are free, carry no third-party advertising, and require no log-in or registration for use—please help us spread the word.

Trivia Challenge

In the last issue of the newsletter, we celebrated our brand-new 20^th Edition and asked you, in what year was the first edition of The Merck Manual published?

The correct answer is 1899.

Read more about our history here.

The Manual has been given to the pope, made cameos on TV and in movies, and been featured in magazines (recently in this Readers’ Digest article on the best sources of health information on the web). Of course it’s also a useful tool for physicians, med students, health professionals, and consumers every day.

Tech Corner

Uh oh—I forgot my User Name and/or Password—now what?

In today’s world it is nearly impossible to remember every user name and password for the myriad of systems and websites we access each day. The Merck Manuals portal user name is easy to remember but different from the typical user name format many systems require. We always use last name period first name. For example, smith.john would be the user name assigned to John Smith. The user name is NOT case sensitive and never includes any spaces. Your password is something that you choose yourself. Here are steps to take in the event that you forget your password or would like to change your password.

First, click the “Forgot your password?” link on the Login screen. Click here for complete directions.

Learning with Procedure Videos

How to Engage Students and Refresh Memories

As those of you who have recently reviewed a chapter know, the Merck Manuals staff has been busily adding multimedia elements to enhance our topics. We have added a number of procedure and examination videos to the Professional version, and more are in the works. These videos are meant to provide step-by-step instructions on how to do typical exams and procedures, such as doing nerve blocks, applying casts, examining the ankle and hand, doing some obstetric procedures, and everting the eye. Check out some of our videos, and keep a look out as we add more. Some chapters will contain several related videos.

Expanding Our Reach

Med Students and the Manuals

One of the Merck Manuals social media outreach channels is a blog, Med Student Stories, in which bloggers share stories of their triumphs and struggles during med school. Because we understand that storytelling is a key tool to help students process the changes in their roles and responsibilities as they progress through school, The Manuals teamed up with AMSA to host Story Slam during this year’s National Convention.

Based on StorySLAM by The Moth, AMSA President-Elect Perry Tsai began organizing Story Slams among his classmates. Through his work with AMSA, Perry saw the benefits of medical students coming together to share their unique experiences. Much like the clinical learning slogan, “See one, do one, teach one,” physicians-in-training can learn from the stories of their peers how to gain better patient outcomes, enhance professional interactions, and build better relationships, similar to the mission of the Med Student Stories blog.

Check out the Med Student Stories.

Milestones

Congratulations to The Merck Manuals’ own Madhavi Reddy, MD on the birth of her adorable daughter, Sritha!

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